The Worship Of Dionysus

Dionysus, or Bacchus, was known as the God of wine, vegetation, fertility and drama. It is said that the worship of Dionysus first came to Ancient Greece through way of Melampus, the son of Amythaon. The opinion of Greek historian Herodotus is that Melampus had learned of an Egyptian procession in worship of God Osiris, including a phallic procession, which he used to introduce Dionysus into Greece for worship and rite. However, there is mention of Dionysus on the Linear B tablets found in the site of Knossos of Crete, showing worship of Dionysus between 1500 and 1100 BC. It is uncertain where exactly the original worship of Dionysus came from, but we can establish through art that this worship gave birth to mystery cults and festivities that